Drug Injectors and Prison Mandatory Drug Testing

Mandatory drug testing (MDT) is a policy that requires people in prison to provide a sample to be tested for the use of illicit drugs. Drug injectors are one group of individuals who spend time in prison. Drawing on qualitative research carried out with male and female drug injectors this article considers their views and experiences of MDT. Five broad themes arose from the analysis of these data. These themes include people's experiences of the test, their strategies to evade drug detection, punishments for testing positive, the effect of MDT on patterns of drug use, and, finally, the notions of power and risk are considered in relation to MDT. The article concludes with a discussion on the worth of this policy.